The U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship is a grant program that enables students of limited financial means to study or intern abroad, thereby gaining skills critical to our national security and economic prosperity. The Institute of International Education has administered the program since its inception in 2001. A Gilman Scholarship enables American students to gain proficiency in diverse languages and cultures, skills that are critically important to their academic and career development.

Benefits

Over 2,900 scholarships of up to $5,000 will be awarded this academic year for U.S. citizen undergraduates to study or intern abroad.

Award amounts will vary depending on the length of study and student need. Applicants who are studying a critical need language while abroad can apply for a supplemental award of up to $3,000, for a combined total of $8,000. This award is competitive and offered to a limited number of Gilman scholars each year. Not all students who are studying these languages will receive $8,000. In addition to receiving additional funds for language study, students who are awarded the Critical Need Language Award and complete their Gilman Scholarship requirements will be offered the opportunity to take the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI). This test and the results will serve as both an evaluation measure of the award and as a credential for the award recipient.

Eligibility

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

To be eligible for a Gilman Scholarship, an applicant must:

• Be a citizen of the United States;
• Be an undergraduate student in good standing at an accredited institution of higher education in the United States (including both two-year and four-year institutions);
• Be receiving a Federal Pell Grant or provide proof that they will be receiving a Pell Grant during the term of their study abroad program or internship;
• Be in the process of applying to, or accepted for, a study abroad or internship program of at least two weeks for community college students and three weeks for students from four-year institutions, in a single country and eligible for credit from the student’s home institution. Proof of program acceptance is required prior to award disbursement;
•  Students are eligible to apply for credit-bearing study abroad programs in a country with an overall Travel Advisory Level 1 or 2, according to the U.S. Department of State’s Travel Advisory System. Certain areas within these countries may be designated within the Travel Advisory as either “Do not travel to” (Level 4) or “Reconsider travel to” (Level 3) locations, as such; students will not be allowed to travel to these areas.

Students are not eligible to apply for programs in a country with an overall Level 3 or 4 Travel Advisory.

The Gilman Program, under the direction of the U.S. Department of State, aims to work with students to make scholarship experiences a success. Should a Travel Advisory change to a Level 3 or 4 after the student has been granted the award, the program will coordinate with participants to select a different destination study site that falls within the guidelines provided by the U.S. State Department Travel Advisory system.